Archive for the ‘ Mark Ridley-Thomas ’ Category

Mark Saladino, Los Angeles County’s former chief attorney, claims the Board of Supervisors coerced his resignation by forcing him to issue a false press release and sign an agreement “under duress” when he stepped down from the job in June. Saladino, who moved to the position of assistant treasurer and tax collector, filed a claim for damages with the county this week.

Los Angeles County’s former chief attorney claims the Board of Supervisors coerced his resignation by forcing him to issue a false press release and sign an agreement “under duress” when he stepped down from the job in June.

Los Angeles County Supervisor Mark Ridley-Thomas drove a 2012 Chrysler 300 luxury sedan, owned by taxpayers, though officials claimed he was driving an older, less expensive car. The newer car was assigned to former Assessor John Noguez. (Photo by Mike Reicher)

On the Los Angeles County government’s official list of employee take-home vehicles, Supervisor Mark Ridley-Thomas looks very frugal. His assigned car, a 9-year-old Chrysler 300 Limited sedan, cost the county about half as much as the next supervisor’s.

County crews performed work on the garage of Los Angeles County Supervisor Mark Ridley-Thomas’ private home, installing drywall, an air conditioner, appliances and a security system, according to sources familiar with the job. (Paul Pringle / Los Angeles Times / December 31, 2013)

By Paul Pringle and Jack Leonard February 11, 2014, 10:30 p.m.

The Los Angeles County district attorney’s office is looking into whether thousands of dollars in taxpayer money was misspent on improvements to Supervisor Mark Ridley-Thomas’ home last year, an office spokeswoman said Tuesday.

L.A. County Supervisor Mark Ridley-Thomas applied for a building permit Friday to renovate what appears to be an improperly converted garage at his Leimert Park home by adding a carport and removing a section of the detached building. (Jay L. Clendenin / Los Angeles Times)

By Jack Leonard and Paul Pringle January 31, 2014, 8:09 p.m.

Los Angeles County Supervisor Mark Ridley-Thomas obtained a building permit Friday to renovate what appears to be an improperly converted garage at his Leimert Park home by adding a carport and removing a section of the detached building.

L.A. County Supervisor Mark Ridley-Thomas says he reimbursed the county for work done in addition to the installation of a taxpayer-funded security system.

By Paul Pringle and Jack Leonard January 22, 2014

Los Angeles County Supervisor Mark Ridley-Thomas acknowledged Tuesday that a taxpayer-funded project to install a security system in a converted garage at his home involved improvements “over and above” that job, but said he reimbursed the county for the upgrades.

A taxpayer-funded project to provide a home security system for Los Angeles County Supervisor Mark Ridley-Thomas included extensive improvements to his garage that involved a week of work and upgrades to the building’s electrical service, according to interviews and records. (Jay L. Clendenin / Los Angeles Times / March 24, 2013)

By Jack Leonard and Paul Pringle January 19, 2014, 8:50 p.m.

A taxpayer-funded project to provide a home security system for Los Angeles County Supervisor Mark Ridley-Thomas included improvements to his converted garage that involved a week of work and upgrades to the building’s electrical service, according to interviews and records.

County crews performed work on the garage of Los Angeles County Supervisor Mark Ridley-Thomas’ private home, installing drywall, an air conditioner, appliances and a security system, according to sources familiar with the job. (Paul Pringle / Los Angeles Times / December 31, 2013)

By Paul Pringle and Jack Leonard January 16, 2014, 8:13 p.m.

Los Angeles city building inspectors launched an investigation Thursday into whether county Supervisor Mark Ridley-Thomas has an illegally converted garage at his Leimert Park home, where government employees recently performed thousands of dollars worth of work.

Dan Walters

Los Angeles County is home to more than a quarter of California’s population, and nearly 60 percent of its residents are Latino.

However, just one of the county’s five supervisors is Latino, and Gloria Molina was elected to the board 22 years ago only because the U.S. Justice Department interceded in redistricting and declared that not creating a Latino seat would violate the Voting Rights Act.

An overflow crowd is expected today as the Board of Supervisors tackles the once-a-decade task of redrawing Los Angeles County’s voting boundaries and decides whether to give Latinos more political clout.

A month after one of his deputies sparked the anger of Los Angeles County supervisors by defying a direct order, the board voted Tuesday to seize authority over two troubled departments from county CEO Bill Fujioka.

In response to Gov. Jerry Brown’s proposal to shift certain state programs to local governments, Los Angeles County supervisors have voted to seek a state constitutional amendment to ensure a steady funding source for programs moved to local control.

Earlier this year, Brown proposed a series of “realignments” to cut costs, including making local governments responsible for state programs such as:

From chauffeurs to charities to parties, the five-member board hands out money from its discretionary accounts with little oversight.

By Garrett Therolf

March 10, 2010 | 5:40 p.m.

As Los Angeles County supervisors prepare to carve deeply into everything from public safety to social services, they also are spending millions in taxpayer dollars to burnish their public images, pay for chauffeurs, hold parties for friends and lobbyists and support pet projects.

Each supervisor receives $3.4 million a year to spend as he or she sees fit, without any public vote or scrutiny.